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Florida state legislative special elections, 2020

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In 2020, one special election was called to fill a vacant seat in the Florida State Legislature. Click here to read more about the special elections.

Senate special elections called:

How vacancies are filled in Florida

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures


If there is a vacancy in the Florida State Legislature, a special election must be called to fill the vacant seat.[1] The governor is responsible for calling the election and must consult with the secretary of state to set the election dates and nominating deadlines.[2] The person elected to fill the seat serves for the remainder of the unexpired term.[3]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: Florida Stat. § 100.101

About the legislature

The Florida Constitution mandates a bicameral state legislature with an upper house, the Florida State Senate, and a lower house, the Florida House of Representatives. The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the November 2018 general election. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).

Florida State Senate
Party As of November 6, 2018 After November 7, 2018
     Democratic Party 16 17
     Republican Party 22 23
     Vacancy 2 0
Total 40 40
Florida House of Representatives
Party As of November 6, 2018 After November 7, 2018
     Democratic Party 41 47
     Republican Party 75 73
     Vacancy 4 0
Total 120 120

Special elections

Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

November 3, 2020

Historical data

There were 723 state legislative special elections that took place from 2010 to 2019. Florida held 24 special elections during the same time period; about two per year on average. The largest number of special elections in Florida took place in 2015 when five special elections were held.

The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year.

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2020

In 2020, 55 state legislative special elections were held in 26 states. Four special elections were canceled in New York due to the coronavirus pandemic. Between 2011 and 2019, an average of 77 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2020 special elections

In 2020, special elections for state legislative positions were held for the following reasons:

  • 23 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 5 due to a resignation related to criminal charges[5]
  • 18 due to retirement
  • 13 due to the death of the incumbent

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections was as follows:

The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2020. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections. In elections between 2011 and 2019, either the Democratic Party or Republican Party saw an average net gain of four seats across the country. Between 2018 and 2019, Democrats had a net gain of six seats.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that were held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2020)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 21 27
     Republican Party 38 32
     Independent 0 0
Total 59 59

Flipped seats

In 2020, eight seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.

Seats flipped from D to R

Seats flipped from R to D


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Florida Legislature, "2023 Florida Statutes," accessed January 23, 2024 (Statute 100.101(2), Florida Election Code)
  2. ↑ Florida Legislature, "2023 Florida Statutes," accessed January 23, 2024 (Statute 100.141 (1) (2), Florida Election Code)
  3. ↑ Florida Legislature, "2023 Florida Statutes," accessed January 23, 2024 (Statute 100.111 (1) (a-c), Florida Election Code)
  4. ↑ Florida Department of State, "Notice of Special Election for the Office of State Senate, District 20," accessed June 5, 2020
  5. ↑ Arkansas State Rep. Mickey Gates (R) was expelled by a vote of the House membership.
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